A New Dawn
by tarot-flair
Summary: Post GSD, Orb and Cagalli face an unknown threat. The ones who love her promise to protect her but who and what will they ultimately choose to protect? [Athrun x Cagalli, Shinn x Cagalli]
1. Chapter 1: Precipice

**Disclaimer**: _Merely a work of fandom. _

**Pairings: **_Athrun x Cagalli, Shinn x Cagalli, Kira x Lacus, the rest have yet to be decided.

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**A New Dawn **

**Chapter 1  
**

**Precipice **

_by tarot-flair_

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_Cosmic Era 75 6.19_

_One year after the end of the Second Bloody Valentine War_

"Cagalli! Here!" The Princess of Orb's head bodyguard, Kisaka, urgently seized her arm and steered her down yet another corridor. Twin gunshots rang out behind them and the sound of pounding footsteps in pursuit echoed down the hallway.

Turning a corner, Kisaka and Cagalli met up with the few remaining men from the Head Representative of Orb's personal guard force.

"Cagalli-sama, we have to get you to safety. There's a hangar in this building two floors down, if we can get there, you can pilot- " Uthar's tense whisper was abruptly cut off by the explosion from a grenade tossed in their vicinity. Cagalli instantly felt Kisaka's arm wrap around her shoulders protectively as they were thrown to the ground by the force of the explosion. Debris showered onto the pitifully small contingent of five men and the woman they so desperately protected and the acrid smell of smoke and explosives permeated the area.

"Cagalli-sama, we have to get moving! They are getting closer!" Kisaka forcibly dragged the trembling Princess away from the horrifying scene of Uthar's charred body. Closing his eyes briefly, he murmured a quick prayer for the loyal, dead bodyguard and tightening his hold on the Princess, urged her toward the stairs. Bitter regret at having believed in the sincerity of the olive branch extended by the President of Eurasia filled Kisaka; if only they had not traveled to this cursed land, if only they had not wanted so badly to believe that there could be peace on Earth, if only they had brought more soldiers, if only, if only. _If only_. But time could not be turned back no matter how hard Kisaka wished and his top priority was getting the Princess of Orb to safety. All the bitter regrets and recriminations could come later.

With the end of the Second Bloody Valentine War and the peace treaty signed between PLANT and Orb, the countries of both Earth and PLANT had settled down to a tenuous calm in order to rebuild their countries and restore the shattered economy. Orb, with its long history of equality among Coordinators and Naturals alike and the close relations between Cagalli Yula Athha and the current Chairperson of PLANT, Lacus Clyne, had quickly emerged as the superior power on Earth. Unfortunately, the restoration of its political stability and economic strength were accompanied by the envy and resentment of various nations. This was hardly the first attempted assassination of the Lioness of Orb, the symbol of Orb's ideals of neutrality, equality and peace; the woman credited with the numerous peace treaties and trade agreements in effect all over the world. The difference, this time, was that they were far from home turf and had four men to the possibly conservative estimate of four hundred trained soldiers on their heels.

A bullet whizzed dangerously close by his ear and he instinctively shielded Cagalli with his body. Using a row of machines as cover, Kisaka exchanged rapid gunfire with two of Eurasia's Elite Armed Forces and one man, mysteriously clothed in black with no sign of any allegiance.

"Commander, please take Cagalli-sama to safety. We will take care of this." Eltho, a Coordinator who had pledged his loyalty to Orb, whispered urgently, his eyes fiercely determined.

"Eltho…" Cagalli's amber eyes filled with tears; eyes which had witnessed far too much conflict, sorrow and pain. She shook her head, fresh tears coursing down her already damp cheeks.

"Cagalli-sama, everything will be alright. It's been an honor. Now, go!" Smiling gently and fondly at the deceptively fragile woman, he turned back and fired several more rounds, wounding one and dispatching another. "Go! Commander, what are you waiting for!"

Nodding respectfully to the three men who remained behind to hold back the increasing waves of soldiers, Kisaka pulled Cagalli down the flight of stairs, emerging into an _empty _hangar.

* * *

"Is her death confirmed?" 

"No, but it shouldn't be long now."

"Hnn, she's been one lucky bitch. Notify me immediately when you retrieve her body."

"Has the press conference been prepared?"

"The media will be informed shortly. You don't have to worry about these details, just do away with her and everything will proceed smoothly." Lips curled around the cigar and he leaned back onto the comfortable couch in the Parliament House, breathing out a cloud of pungent cigar smoke.

* * *

Kisaka stared in disbelief at the empty hangar at the military base of Eurasia. Not a single fighter jet or mobile suit in sight. It had been entirely cleaned out. The bastards had definitely put some thought into this operation. Clenching his fists, he suppressed the threatening sense of helplessness and pressed one of his guns into Cagalli's hands. Removing several rounds of ammunition from his coat, he handed them to Cagalli with a grim smile, "just in case." 

This was the largest military installation on Eurasia, there was no way they could have removed all the air forces in so short a time. That meant that there had to be some secreted away close by. Keeping Cagalli protectively behind his back, he ran along the walls of the hangar, towards the exit. If they could get out of this camera-monitored, empty space, it would be easier to find a place to hide or steal a transport vehicle.

Crouching behind the door of the exit, Kisaka leaned out and saw the mobilization of units in the distance. They were pulling out all the stops to ensure the death of the Head Representative of Orb. However, the empty hangars in the area also meant that they were fairly isolated from any active squadrons; there was no choice but to go out into the open.

"Cagalli-sama, no matter what happens, you have to survive and find a way back to Orb. Evade detection and wait for an opportunity to steal a mobile suit, shuttle or fighter jet; anything that will get you away from here, do you understand? No matter what happens, you have to survive." Kisaka had never been so grateful for the unconventional princess' combat ability and distaste for dresses. Gazing into her fierce, tear-filled amber orbs, Kisaka felt mildly comforted that if anyone stood a chance at survival, it was definitely Cagalli Yula Athha.

"Of course, Kisaka, but I won't be leaving alone." Cagalli forced a tremulous smile and with practiced hands, loaded the gun and removed the safety bolt.

Just as they were moving out from the exit, a gunshot resounded in the eerie emptiness of the hangar.

"Cagalli-sama!" Red blossomed on the pure white of her military uniform as she was knocked back into Kisaka's arms. Wasting no time, Kisaka dragged Cagalli out of the door, slamming it in shut just in time to hear the deafening cacophony of bullets rebounding off impervious metal alloy.

"It's alright, Kisaka, let's go!" Cagalli bit out even as she pressed a hand over the rapidly spreading spot of red on her shoulder. Ascertaining that the wound was not fatal for the moment, the shaken bodyguard supported her around the waist and took off towards a building marked Sector 73. He could hear the alarms set off in the distance and the increasing volume of commotion behind them made him quicken his steps; his heartbeat ringing alarmingly loud in his ears as he prayed fervently for Cagalli's escape.

Gunshots were fired in quick succession at the escaping pair and Kisaka vaguely felt a burning sensation in his arm. Shrugging it off, he shoved Cagalli into an alleyway even as he shot several of their pursuers in the head before ducking into the temporary protection of the alleyway too. Sector 73 was no longer an option; they would have to find another hangar and at the rate the situation was escalating, they had better find it soon.

Gritting his teeth, Kisaka shepherded his precious burden down another side alley and tried to ignore the searing pain. He had taken another bullet in the thigh in the previous brief confrontation but adrenaline and the fear gnawing at him were very effective painkillers.

They had been running for several minutes when Kisaka spotted the telltale signs of a mobile suit storage sector.

"Cagalli-sama, here!" He had barely managed to grasp the door handle when a gunshot rang out and his semi-automatic skidded away from any possible retrieval. Cursing his ineptitude, he was moving to shield the petite Princess when another gunshot fired and the Eurasia Soldier fell heavily to the ground, blood already pooling around him from a fatal, well-placed chest wound.

"Kisaka, your arm! Your hand…" The foolishly compassionate 19-year-old Head of State looked down in dismay at his bleeding hand. The bullet had merely grazed his palm and although it was bleeding rather profusely, did not hurt quite as much as the bullet lodged in his thigh but he made no sign of discomfort as he bent forward to retrieve the soldier's handgun.

"It'll take more than a wound like this to bring me down, Cagalli-sama. I'll definitely still be around to remind you to wear a dress for your wedding." Patting her golden head tenderly, Cagalli's bodyguard since quite possibly forever, proceeded to twist the knob of the door, leading an uneasy Princess into the cool darkness.

The pair had not gone more than twenty paces when they spotted the unmistakable outline of a mobile suit – large, imposing and probably a GAT-01 Strike Dagger, the mass-produced and favored unit utilized by the Eurasian forces. It would be a cinch for Cagalli to operate and Kisaka felt hope flooding his rapidly pounding heart.

He had barely a second to enjoy the momentary euphoria when several more gunshots found their targets in the steel pillar directly in front of them. Instinctively, he pulled Cagalli closer to him and laid his back flat against the pillar.

In the brief lull before rounds of gunfire, Kisaka risked a glance around the pillar at their adversaries. Quickly, he scanned the area; two men crouched by a mobile suit controller, one more to the left wing of the hangar and two more directly beneath the mobile suit he planned to steal. With reflexes honed by countless years of warfare, it only took a millisecond for Kisaka to aim and fire at the two men hunkered down near the mobile suit. A dull thud and a muttered curse, the clatter of a gun dropped and the ominous sound of the reloading of a gun echoed in the eerie stillness of the hangar. Damn. He had only managed one clean kill, possibly wounded the other; that still left him with four opponents and a princess who really ought not to be here. More bullets pounded into the pillar serving as their cover. Kisaka had grown up listening to the dissonance of gunfire and explosives but it was a sound he had never been reconciled with.

"Cagalli, when I give the signal, run for the mobile suit. You have only to get into the pilot's seat, do not concern yourself with anything else, do you promise?" His voice was solemn, grim and brooked no argument.

Even with her hair covered in a fine layer of dust and littered with debris, a bullet graze on her cheek and an assortment of smudges and bloodstains, the fierce frustration and infuriated impotence in those eyes reminded him of a lion. She was every inch the Lioness of Orb indeed; her golden eyes, golden mane, Uzumi-sama would have been proud of her. Smiling gently, he hugged her lightly to him before pushing her out in the direction of the mobile suit even as he leapt out from behind the pillar, instantly firing and killing the man by the Dagger.

Firing several more shots in the general vicinity where he had last seen the two men crouched by the mobile suit controller, his heart contracted sharply when Cagalli's scream shattered the still air. Catching sight of the slight movement made by a figure in black, Kisaka instinctively took aim and only when the silhouette crumpled into an unmoving heap did he run frantically towards the direction of the scream.

Her gun thrown a good distance away from her and flung onto her back, Cagalli momentarily recalled a similar scenario three years ago on a deserted island in the Pacific Ocean. But the cold, expressionless eyes she was confronted with were far different from the passionate fury of a set of emerald orbs. Her scream was not likely to have earned her the same leniency she had experienced three years ago from a Coordinator. Ironically, there was no hesitance in this Natural's pull of the trigger when once, a Coordinator had paused in the swing of his knife. Cagalli only had time to close her fingers around the chain she wore perpetually around her neck before a black blur dashed before her and the fatal blows of two guns were fired.

"Kisaka… Kisaka!"

"Kisaka… you stupid fool!" The Princess of Orb chanted brokenly, her hands desperately trying to stem the heavy flow of blood gushing from a chest wound.

"Kisaka, please… you have to get up… we have to go home…"

"Cagalli, the mobile suit, now! You promised… and you don't break your promises. Go now, please."

The tears could not seem to stop flowing, the anguish of the heart overwhelming all her senses so that vision was a dim blur and hearing, a muffled sensation. She wanted to stay here, beside his comforting solidity and suffer the same wounds. This gush of blood would surely remove the all-encompassing ache in her heart; of witnessing people she loved dying over and over again. They never gave her the chance.

"Cagalli… it's alright… so go…" His voice was a faint whisper, laden with affection.

"Kisaka…" With one last glance, she picked up the semi-automatic discarded by the dead assassin and ran blindly towards the mobile suit, his blood seemingly etched into her skin.

**

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**Author's Notes**: _Gundam Seed Destiny is the very first anime that has prompted me to write fanfiction. The ending left me so dissatisfied and frustrated that I actually attempted writing a continuation. I'm sorry to say that there will be lots of angst ahead and quite possibly a lot of Shinn x Cagalli because I'm so very intrigued by that pairing. Comments will be very much appreciated. _


	2. Chapter 2: Betrayal

**Disclaimer:**_ Merely a work of fandom. _

**Note**: _I knew I ought to have written a few more chapters before posting the story but I got hasty, insecure, frustrated and posted it anyway. Consequently, midway through this chapter, I discovered various loopholes in the plot. I've corrected a few subtle details in the first chapter but it's probably not necessary for you to reread it if you did read it the first time. I'm really sorry but hopefully, I've worked out the kinks in the plot and I won't have to change anything else. Thanks to the reviews from Moments of Insanity, Kageharu Kaco, Lems and Birdy-Chan. I had no idea it would be this difficult writing fanfiction but your reviews kept me going and I really appreciate that._

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**A New Dawn **

**Chapter 2  
**

**Betrayal **

_by tarot-flair_

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The eight-ball rolled lazily across the green felt table, rebounded off the sides of the billiard table twice and formed a perfect angle towards the leftmost side pocket before dropping into it with an ominous thud. 

Like the calm before a storm, the silence that came after the end of the game lasted a full minute before chaos, in the form of one Yzak Joule, erupted.

"You goddamn bastard! You must have rigged the table, or the balls, or the cue! I'm going to beat you in the next game!" Yzak's pale skin was rapidly turning a mottled red and a very visible muscle twitch was developing near his temple.

"Again? But there's hardly any challenge in- "

"You arrogant bastard! Just wait till I beat you, we'll see who gets the last laugh then. We're playing again, you insufferable prick."

"I'll have to wait a very long time then. Are you sure you don't want me to play with my hands tied behind my back?"

"God, you _friggin_- "

"Yzak, just give it up at billiards, isn't this already the eleventh game? You can just find something else to beat him at! Like… …." The dark-skinned boy with his shock of blond hair trailed off nervously as he valiantly tried to suggest a viable solution to Athrun's invincibility.

Yzak turned a darker shade of red.

Fortunately, before he resorted to physical intimidation (not that it ever amounted to much), the door swung open and Kira's head of messy brown hair came into sight.

"Lacus and Meyrin are here. We'll meet in the conference room in five." With that, he was gone, quite probably skipping down the stairs to greet his beloved pink-haired princess.

The pleasantly murderous atmosphere in the room ruined by Kira's oblivious exuberance, Yzak reluctantly abandoned his grand plan of besting Athrun at the stupid game of knocking balls around a table and tossed his cue in the general direction of Dearka before striding out of the door. Well, at least he beat Athrun in leaving the room. Yzak violently slammed the door shut for good measure.

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She was six ragged breaths from the mobile suit lift when the first shot hit the wall, inches from her head. Fresh adrenaline coursing through her, she picked up speed and sought protection behind the mobile suit. _Damn, there was still one left, maybe more._ Sparks flew as more bullets grazed the side of the mobile suit she was hiding behind. _She couldn't let Kisaka's sacrifice and hopes be reduced to ashes, specifically her ashes._ The shower of bullets abruptly stopped and sure, measured footsteps echoed in the silence of the hangar. 

"There's no point in hiding, _Princess_, you're not half as courageous as they make you out to be." A sneer; a voice laced with confidence and hatred. _A woman's voice. _

The voice was drifting from the left side of the mobile suit; the footsteps were coming nearer, slowly but surely. Quietly, careful not to make the slightest noise, Cagalli crept from her current position to the other leg of the mobile suit. It was now or never; she leapt out into view and fired indiscriminately in the direction of the footsteps.

An angry curse, the sound of a set of hurried footsteps and the empty click of Cagalli's gun. _Shit_. She was out of ammunition. The other woman's gun lay abandoned on the ground and fear propelled her forward. As she leaned over to pick up the gun, she felt a hand grip her arm roughly and another hand grab her hair. In a moment, she had been turned upside down. Her face and shoulders were being pressed into the ground by the woman's knee, while her back was excruciatingly bent and her legs were pinioned by the woman's arm. Cagalli was helpless to use her arms; she couldn't bend her back to gain slack so she could use her legs. The woman's knee thrust painfully downward. "What makes you think," asked the woman, her voice soft and rasping, "that you can bring peace to earth?"

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"We're getting married." 

Kira grinned foolishly. Lacus smiled beatifically.

Athrun grunted noncommittally and continued fiddling with his latest robotic invention. Dearka appeared to be too absorbed in accomplishing the feat of devouring his burger in two bites and Yzak was critically examining his glass of water for any Zala contamination.

Meyrin did not disappoint. "That's wonderful! When will the big day be?" Her eyes fairly shone with excitement.

"Took you guys long enough." Yzak snorted, taking a delicate sip of the water after reaching the conclusion that while Athrun might well be an ass, his kitchen was in excellent sanitary condition.

"Congratulations." Athrun finally looked up from the misshapen red object balanced on his knee but the natural sincerity in his smile immediately earned him forgiveness.

Gulping down his burger, Dearka smirked. "Finally you're making an honest woman out of Lacus, about time already! You guys behave like an old, married couple anyway." Kira predictably blushed. Lacus smiled beatifically.

"This is so exciting! It'll be the grandest event on PLANT, no in the universe! We'll need to invite President Edward Harrelson, Prime Minster Tokada Koizumi, Senior Minister Mikhail Hieronimus, Orb's- " Meyrin's enthusiasm was abruptly brought to a halt by a dumbfounded Kira.

"Um, why do we need to invite so many people?"

"Does the fact that Lacus is the Chairperson of PLANT mean anything to you?" Yzak really could not figure out how this clueless idiot could be _the _Ultimate Coordinator.

"Oh… I was just thinking of a quiet and simple ceremony with only our closest friends."

"And I suppose you want Lacus to keep the marriage a secret too or risk having all the world leaders think that PLANT did not send them an invitation." The pale-haired boy sneered disdainfully.

"We will just have two ceremonies- a private affair just among friends and the customary, loud, artificial bash. I'll get to shop for more dresses too. What do you think, Kira?" It was no wonder that PLANT, under Lacus' influence, had yet to have another nuclear missile aimed at it. She smiled so prettily, twirled her adorably pink hair so daintily and enunciated her words so elegantly that most people never notice the fact that Lacus actually had an intelligence superior to a certain _Ultimate Coordinator_.

Said Coordinator was obviously another one of those besotted fools, because Kira visibly brightened up and said, in an utterly whipped voice, "Anything you want, Lacus."

If Kira was the best specimen of a Coordinator, some days, Yzak almost wished he was a Natural.

If the Second Bloody Valentine War had served any good, it was the forming of indissoluble bonds between those who had met on the bloody battlefield. The shared experiences of losing loved ones, of taking the lives of loved ones, of facing helplessness and guilt; were the catalysts for friendships and relationships. Particularly for Yzak, who came to realize the good sense behind the proverb, "if you can't beat them, join them."

Upon the end of the war, Lacus was generously offered a seat on the PLANT Supreme Council where the other council members hoped she would put her commendable scheming skills to good use and where Lacus went, Kira naturally followed. Athrun's decision to return to PLANT to try and undo the damage his father and Chairman Durandal caused inevitably resulted in Meyrin's inclusion into the close-knit group of friends. Yzak preferred to think of his involvement with this bunch of rebels as necessary undercover work on his rivals, and also his duty as Commander to ensure that Zala did not defect for a _third _time. Dearka, he surmised, was probably there for the food. Zala's arrogance not withstanding, Yzak thought that spending one of his precious off days discussing a wedding was considerably more enjoyable than fashioning dart boards out of Athrun's pictures.

"Have you two decided on a date? Then, there are the dresses to think of, I can recommend a couple of designers. You'll need to go for food tasting sessions too, and we'll definitely need extra security. What about the venue, have you thought about that? Oh, and you'll need to appoint a bridesmaid and best man!" Meyrin was clearly warming up to the topic.

"Mine will definitely be Cagalli!" Kira beamed, pleased that he had finally contributed to the discussion.

Five incredulous pairs of eyes focused on him.

Kira was beginning to feel distinctly uncomfortable.

"What?" He muttered defensively.

"And here I was thinking that you would pick your best friend to be your best _man_." Athrun commented dryly.

Dearka guffawed unceremoniously.

"Which part of _best man_ do you not understand?"Once again, it was up to Yzak to enlighten the poor, deluded fellow. Really, he had no idea how the imbecile could have beaten him so many times in their aerial skirmishes.

Kira had the grace to look slightly embarrassed.

Before he could open his mouth and stick his foot in again, the holographic television screen in Athrun's conference room flickered on.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have an unfortunate announcement to make." The man on the podium was dressed in Orb's customary ministerial uniform; deep purple jacket and slacks over a white, collared shirt. The entire council of Emirs, with the notable exception of the Head Representative who would usually be making any world announcements of this import, was gathered behind him, looking unusually solemn. Yzak had been in enough sticky political and combat situations to recognize the premonition of bad news. 

"Turn up the volume, Dearka." Yzak was fairly certain that he had misheard the tremor in Athrun's voice. Zala was nothing if not calm and collected.

"As the world may or may not have heard, a few hours ago, a breakthrough peace treaty between Eurasia and Orb was scheduled to be signed. As a mark of sincerity and respect, our esteemed Head Representative of State, Cagalli Yula Athha, personally traveled to Eurasia to honor this agreement. However, we the Council of Orb deeply regret to say that Orb has been deceived!" At this point, the man appeared to be unable to continue. Head bowed, his jaw clenched and unclenched several times before another minister walked up to place a hand on his shoulder. When he next looked up, unshed tears glistened in his eyes.

"We regret to announce that the peace treaty was a hoax and Representative Athha has been brutally gunned down."

The incomplete robotic pet fell from Athrun's nerveless hands, clattering to the ground where it knocked into the coffee table with a note of finality.

"That's impossible, Lacus, I would know it if anything happened to Cagalli! That can't be true, it can't be true!" Despite what his words claimed, the inevitable tears were staining the normally bright violet of Kira's eyes, turning them to a near-black.

Wordlessly, Lacus pulled him closer, trembling fingers reaching up to stroke his hair. She wished she could tell him that everything would be all right; that the announcement was a horrible joke and that Cagalli was still somewhere in Orb protesting against dresses and chewing out her council members. But she, all of them, had witnessed enough death to know the painful possibility of losing a loved one in a blink of an eye.

Dearka, for once, was struck speechless and the disquieting silence from the normally loud-mouthed man seemed to confirm the shocking news. Meyrin's hand was pressed against her mouth and blood had completely drained from her face. She looked close to fainting and Yzak vaguely hoped that she would not, because Athrun was definitely not in any shape to break her fall. Yzak, himself, had never even met the woman but he felt a strange sense of loss for the courageous princess whose life he had inadvertently saved in the first war.

The man on the podium was continuing, "I understand that this news will come as a shock to many countries and people in the world. Representative Athha was an exceptional and devoted leader whose loss will be greatly mourned by many. After much discussion, the Council has decided that, despite the short notice, it is imperative that we select a new Head Representative in order to deal with the current crisis. I, Taiten Toma Saran, am extremely humbled to announce that the Council has elected me as the new Head Representative of State. As a symbol of my new responsibilities and authority, I present the insignia of Orb."

"Cagalli…" The softly-spoken word was hardly a whisper; grief, disbelief, fear, fury verbalized into a single word. Athrun's eyes were swiftly acquiring a very familiar, glazed look.

Haplessly unaware of the havoc he was wrecking light years away in PLANT, Saran laid both palms down on the podium, and authoritatively proclaimed, "As the new Head Representative of Orb, I would like to ask for your support and cooperation. The state of Eurasia has consistently flouted humanitarian and international laws, we cannot allow the assassination of our honorable princess to go unavenged! Orb hereby declares war on Eurasia!"

The press conference room exploded into pandemonium; flashbulbs blinked across the hall, reporters forgot all about courtesy and disjointed questions were tossed unrelentingly at the man responsible for the shocking statement. Orb had only recently commemorated the first-year anniversary of the end of the Second War. To suggest going to war again when some parts of Orb still lay in ruins was not only injudicious, it was blasphemy. But the murder of their much-loved Princess; the feisty, compassionate woman who had personally overseen the rebuilding of infrastructure, who had spoken individually to bereaved families, who had had despairing curses thrown at her and yet reached out to comfort the grieving, could they just let the perpetuators of her death get away scot-free? Death, revenge, was a vicious, inescapable cycle.

So it was that when the heavy oak doors of the press conference room were thrown open, nobody registered the intrusion until a ragged, furious voice roared.

"The hell you will!"

The hordes of journalists and cameramen swiveled in unison and the image of a blonde, disheveled woman flickered into view on Athrun's holographic screen.

* * *

**Author's Note:**_ I've been plagued with utterly sappy, fluffy plot bunnies which are absolutely impossible to integrate into this current chapter. Hence, my slightly schizophrenic change in points of view because I am inundated with thoughts of married bliss and everything sugary and toothache-inducing but instead, I'm forced to type angsty grief. Once again, reviews are greatly appreciated!_


	3. Chapter 3: First Turn of the Wheel

**Disclaimer: **_Merely a work of fandom._

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**A New Dawn **

**Chapter 3  
**

**First Turn of the Wheel **

_by tarot-flair_

* * *

Athrun did not feel like anything resembling a 19-year-old genetically enhanced human. For one, his heart felt dangerously close to giving out and second, he had not even realized he had been holding his breath until the cause of the disruption of the press conference strode up to the podium and shoved the dark-haired man, whose name he could not and did not care to remember, out of the way. 

"People of Orb and all the other nations around the world, I am the Head Representative of Orb, Cagalli Yula Athha, as I am certain most of you will recognize me as. Please do not entertain fanciful ideas of resurrection, lingering spirits or impersonation. The assassination attempt is unfortunately true, as you can tell." The woman who constantly haunted his thoughts and dreams visibly grimaced at the state of her attire – it was almost impossible to tell that her military uniform had originally been white in color, so stained it was in blood and dirt. _Blood._ She was literally soaked in it; the sickening red mingling with her fine, spun-gold hair, smudged on her cheeks, and tainting the pristine whiteness of her uniform. Athrun was a soldier; years of compulsory basic medical training and warfare made him more than certain that she was favoring her shoulder, or was it her arm or was it- _Oh God, if I call for a shuttle now, it should be ready in less than an hour, or maybe immediately if I exploit my status. Or maybe a mobile suit would be faster. _His erratic train of thought abruptly screeched to a halt when the indomitable and strangely fragile woman regained her composure and resolutely plowed on.

"However, the fact that I am standing before you now also means that the assassination attempt has quite obviously been foiled." She took a shaky breath and in a husky whisper, "at an undeniably great cost, but nevertheless as long as I draw breath, I refuse to engage Orb in such a meaningless war, any war." The shock at her unexpected appearance, her sudden revival, had subsided a little and the murmur of discussion among the Council and the mass of journalists was beginning to rise to a deafening pitch even as Athrun gazed, transfixed, at the screen. She's alive – it was the one prevailing thought in his head. There was no doubt that the woman on the screen was the same girl who had tried to shoot him seconds upon setting eyes on him; the same girl who had commandeered a battleship and the same girl who had told him in no uncertain terms that she was not going to let him die. _She's alive._

Another grimace, but she shrugged it off and leaned forward, closer to the microphone. "The circumstances surrounding this incident are rather unusual, I ask that time be given for a thorough investigation before any conclusion or action is taken." A pause and a sharply drawn-in breath as Athrun noticed her fingers tightening around the edges of the podium, her knuckles white with exertion. He waited for someone to usher her off the stage, to insist on medical attention, to tell the journalists-suddenly-turned-vultures to go to hell, but no such thing happened and Athrun's fist clenched involuntarily.

"In the meantime, I would like to assure the citizens of Orb and the world that I will remain as the Head Representative and while I appreciate the Council's good intentions, there will be no change in leadership and… " The increasing faintness of her voice ought to have alerted Athrun but nothing could have prepared him for the immediate pang of fear when her eyes grew blank and she passed out in a dead faint.

Cagalli! Athrun had risen out of his seat, instinctively moving towards the holographic screen as though he was capable of reaching her in time. Fortunately, there was somebody else who was actually capable of doing exactly that.

"What the hell. Is that _SHINN _from FAITH!"

Athrun didn't think that there was any need to answer Yzak. The answer was glaringly obvious – nobody else had eyes quite the same shade of red or that perpetually antagonistic expression. Even garbed in the incongruous, baffling Orb military uniform, the boy who was currently supporting Cagalli with one arm and leaning forward to speak into the microphone, was unmistakably, unquestionably, even though _impossibly_, Shinn Asuka.

"Our Head Representative requires time for recuperation. You people will have to wait to ask her any questions." It had been over a year since Athrun had last seen those eyes but their intensity was far from diminished. He glared into the crowd unrepentantly, those forceful red eyes challenging anyone to dispute his claim. Casting a disdainful glance over the shell-shocked roomful of dignitaries and journalists, he lifted Cagalli into his arms and marched out of the room without a backward glance. If the physical similarities had not convinced Athrun that the boy was Shinn, the belligerent attitude definitely did. He didn't think even a twin brother would share that many similarities. But why would Shinn be in such proximity to the person he claimed to hate the most? Why would he, in the first place, even be enlisted in the Orb Military that he claimed, killed his parents? Meyrin's shriek shook him out of his disjointed thoughts.

"That's _SHINN_, right? Oh my god, that's _SHINN_ in the Orb Military!" He wished everybody would just quit saying Shinn in that particular pitch, it was beginning to grate on his nerves.

"You don't think he's going to try to kill her right? I mean… umm… it's… after all…" Meyrin gestured helplessly, her confusion apparent.

"I'm going to Orb, now." It was hardly the answer Meyrin had been looking for but then Kira did not look like he had even heard her question. Athrun could not remember the last time, in fact anytime at all, that Kira had looked so furious. It was a contained anger though, a carefully-banked fire of fury that promised dire consequences when unleashed. Athrun could empathize. For a fraction of a moment, he almost felt sorry for the ones responsible for the assassination attempt; if they knew what was good for them, they had better pray hard that Kira would get to them first.

* * *

"How is she?" Shinn asked impatiently, a hint of concern creeping into his voice. Maybe he ought to call for another doctor; this one obviously did not seem to know what he was doing. 

The Athha family doctor who had taken care of Cagalli ever since she was a child, clucked disapprovingly at the agitated colonel before turning back to his task of binding the princess' shoulder wound. He had, in fact, made his diagnosis nearly ten minutes ago but he found it mildly amusing to see the impatient young boy squirm. He had no idea how someone like Shinn Asuka, who apparently did not possess a single shred of patience, had risen to the rank of colonel, and so quickly too! Privately, he thought Cagalli-sama was playing favorites but then again, he had never concerned himself with military affairs. When he was finally good and ready, after making sure the bandages were of the right tension, he looked up and nearly chuckled out loud at the livid scowl on Col. Asuka's face. Ah, what a productive day of work. "Now, now, no need to get your blood pressure all up," he gave himself a mental pat on the back when the scowl deepened ferociously. "She just fainted from blood loss. I've extracted the bullet and she probably won't be able to use her arm for a while, but apart from that and a couple of bruises, she's perfectly fine. Cagalli's a tough girl, there's nothing to worry about." With that, he dared to pat the prickly colonel on the shoulder and left hurriedly when Shinn directed his patented glare at him. Really, how they put such unstable people in charge of weapons of mass destruction was beyond him.

Pulling up a straight-back chair, Shinn settled himself next to Cagalli's bed. Her breathing was so light and shallow it barely stirred the covers over her chest. It scared him. Frequently her eyelids fluttered as though she was having a bad dream. Otherwise, she lay motionless, soundless, limp. With those wine-colored eyes hidden from view, her physical resemblance to Stellar was striking and Stellar had… well, he had failed Stellar. Gently, he traced her sleeping features with callused fingertips. Asleep, she looked fragile and young; too young to have to shoulder the responsibilities of a country. He should have forced her off the podium just now, even if he had to drag her away kicking and screaming. "Tough girl huh," he mused wryly at the thought of the doctor's comment, "if you only knew…"

* * *

The end of the war had stripped him of his purpose. In the thick of war, at least, he had had immediate objectives set out for him: eliminate this enemy, capture that enemy, quell this uprising. Life had fallen into a routine, albeit a violent one but at least, late at night, he was haunted by the ghosts of the people he had killed and not the memories of the family he had failed to save. The end of the war had stripped him of all that. The trust he had placed in ZAFT and Chairman Durandal had disintegrated, along with his identity and the red suit it represented. Peace meant that soldiers could return home to families, and families could rebuild the homes they lost but peace was an empty word to him. There was no family to return to, no home that he desired. Orb was the closest to both and so he found himself standing on familiar ground, facing a familiar stone memorial. 

It made him uneasy, nauseous even, to stand there and face that cold, unforgiving stone slab. That's proof that they are really dead, a voice whispered at the back of his head. He fancied he could hear Mayu's laughter floating on the breeze. Here, the memories were more tangible; as tangible as shards of glass pricking at him. Luna told him to set the past behind him, and to start life afresh, with her. He knew she meant well and he would always be eternally grateful- she had been his only anchor in life after the war. But to set aside the past was impossible because that was really all he consisted of. He feared that the day would arrive when he would wake up and his first thought was not of Mayu making fun of him over breakfast, or his mother admonishing him to finish his cereal or his father insisting on his studying. At least this constant pain and longing was testament to their existence; that they had lived and _still_ lived in Shinn's memory. There was no immediate place he had to be at after the war; nothing that particularly needed him anymore, so despite the vague sense of disquiet, he remained on Orb to, as Freedom's pilot put it, replant the flowers.

The house they had lived in previously was naturally destroyed by the war. In its place, a temporary house for refugees and orphans was set up and so Shinn found himself in the awkward position of caring for orphaned children in exchange for a room in very nearly the exact position of his old home.

"Shinn nii-chan! Cagalli-sama is coming! She's coming to visit me!" 7-year old Ted howled in delight.

A solemn boy with hair the color of snow rolled his eyes in contempt. "She's visiting _us_, you twit."

Shinn ignored the ensuing chaos. "Cagalli Yula Athha! What the hell is she doing here?" He asked, incredulous, and immediately slapped his hand over his mouth guiltily. Why did they have to make him take care of the _children_, he was probably, unconsciously, teaching them enough swear words to earn himself a very uncomfortable place in a very warm climate after death.

"She's visiting me, of course, Shinn-nii-chan. I _just_ told you!" Little Ted looked put out and that was never a good sign.

"Aa, so you did." Shinn placed both hands in front of him in a placating gesture. "She's nothing special though, unless you count exceptionally inept and short-tempered as special."

The eyes of both boys in front of him grew wide as saucers. "You met Cagalli-sama!" He winced at the near-shriek. The entire room had grown unnaturally silent as all the children focused their attention on him. What was this- an Athha fan club? God knows the annoying woman didn't deserve it. "Uh…" He hedged, desperate for a way out. "Well…"

"Children! Cagalli-sama's here, don't you want to say hello?" Martha, the portly overall-in-charge, called out and the room was emptied of children almost instantly. Shinn could have kissed her in relief. He had better hide somewhere before he bumped into the infuriating woman though, which would inevitably result in a very public and loud brawl. As luck would have it, the moment his foot left the threshold of the room, he found himself gazing into a pair of amber eyes. _Damn. _

"I thought the name was just a coincidence when all they could talk about was a Shinn nii-chan."

How she had such an uncanny ability to irritate him was beyond reasoning. "Don't you have more important things to do than bother me?" Just her voice alone was pissing him off.

"Ah well, just don't go corrupting the children into destroying Orb."

The nerve of the woman! Shinn felt very close to bursting a blood vessel, if he had not already done so. "If they do, you deserve it!"

"I was just kidding; I have to agree that was a poor joke though. Seriously, thank you for looking after them."

"Why the hell are you thanking me, I didn't do it for you!" Shinn didn't know quite what to do with this new and strangely calm woman, so different from the uncertain and dim-witted fool he had first met on board Minerva.

"Although, I admit I've never thought you would suit the role of nurturing little kids." Her eyes twinkled in mischief as she blatantly ignored his angry outburst.

Almost involuntarily and instantly, he felt his ire rise. Honestly, every word that came out of her mouth was offensive. In fact, he was amazed that the other countries' leaders had not declared war on Orb simply because of how offensive the woman was. "What would _you_ know about nurturing little kids! You're probably the reason they wake up screaming at night!" Shinn couldn't believe the cheek of the woman, to make a joke when her country lay in ruins and not five feet away were kids orphaned by war.

"Do they?" The unexpectedly captivating sparkle in her eyes was gone, replaced by an unfathomable sadness. "Do they wake up screaming at night?"

The unintentional revelation of weakness unnerved him and Shinn felt like he had glimpsed something he should not have seen, something private. He shuffled awkwardly. "What do you care?" He refused to back down, though. Damn her.

"You're right, why would I care about such trivial things..." It was better to pretend that he had not heard the brittleness in her voice.

"Cagalli, it's time to leave. You have more places to visit." The imposing figure of a grey-haired, pony-tailed man appeared on the porch. Her bodyguard, of course, Shinn thought derisively. If I were her, I would keep a couple by my side too, seeing as how aggravating she is, no doubt there was a queue of people waiting to kill her. Pity he wasn't allowed sharp objects or firearms around the children.

"I'm afraid I'll have to cut this pleasant meeting short." She smiled and the light returned to her eyes. "And Shinn, the kids really love you." Her smile widened and she waved goodbye as though Shinn was a precious friend she was reluctant to part with. It left a bitter taste in his mouth.

The next time he met her, he and Luna were helping pilot mobile suits to clear rubble to make way for new housing. She was not ten feet away, discussing blueprints with several contractors. Or rather, arguing would be a more appropriate word. There didn't seem to be a single politically correct bone in her body. She gesticulated wildly at the large pieces of paper, her insistent demands drifting into his hearing: No! You have to make this room larger, that's hardly enough space for a family of five! No, there isn't going to be a military installation there, convert it into a school and a playground. But he was vaguely comforted that he was not the only person she smiled to in that unsettling way. She smiled in a similarly infectious way to the contractors when they finally relented to her demands and he was suitably disgusted when they predictably melted.

When he descended from the cockpit for lunch, he was appalled to find her still in the vicinity, this time arguing with a military commander. He couldn't help but overhear since the woman was so damn _loud_-there's no way I'll agree to a military post so near to a residential site. Are you crazy? He was starving and she stood in the way of food and salvation. He stuck his hands in his pockets and tried to nonchalantly stroll past. No such luck.

"Shinn!" She beamed and waved enthusiastically at him.

Why the hell did she persist in treating him as a friend? He _knew_ he hadn't done anything to encourage it. He wished she would just get it into her thick skull that he hated her, absolutely hated her.

"Are you helping with the housing project?" Her eyes practically radiated delight and he felt aggravated already at the extraordinary amounts of good cheer she was projecting. "Is she helping too?" He turned around and saw Luna walking towards them. "Lunamaria Hawke, isn't she? Please thank her for helping Orb rebuild too."

"Stop acting so saintly. It's your fault that there is any need to rebuild at all." The words came so easily, so reflexively that Shinn had not even processed the thought.

She hesitated, her smile dying abruptly, and Shinn felt as though he had kicked a puppy. "That's true. But thank you all the same." She finally said, quietly, before turning back to her conversation with the military commander.

He would meet her several more times, it was impossible not to. The damn woman was _everywhere_- she paid another visit to the orphanage, visits to the refugee centers, she oversaw every building project he was involved with and somehow, she still found time to attend peace treaty conferences. Even Luna commented on her stamina, "she's really something, I thought we saw her at the new elementary school yesterday," while Shinn and her were watching the evening news of yet another peace treaty signed between Orb and another country. To which he retorted sharply, "maybe she's learning a thing or two from Durandal and using a double." But the words had lacked his usual sting and Luna had looked at him oddly, head cocked to one side.

It was six months when he woke up and his first thought was one of irritation that the kids were creating a din so early in the morning. He rubbed at his bleary eyes and scowled at the strong sunlight streaming into- _Oh god. _He jumped out of bed and frantically rummaged in his desk drawer for the pink phone he used to carry everywhere. It was only when it was lying in his hand, when he could feel the firm weight of the plastic that his heartbeat slowed down marginally. When he had used to carry it around in his pocket everywhere, even into the battlefield, he had now, left it in the darkness of a desk drawer. He had told himself that it was alright; that Orb alone, was more than enough of a constant reminder of them, but this morning, he had woken up feeling as though everything was alright with the world, and that world had not included Mayu and his parents.

"Shinn, are you alright? I heard a crash…" Luna's red head peeked around the door before the woman herself came into full view, her brows furrowed in concern.

It was hard trying to speak past the lump in his throat so Shinn kept silent, his fingers closing tightly around the pink plastic.

He felt, rather than saw, Luna move to his side, kneeling down next to him and closing her own fingers around his.

"Are you still thinking about them?"

I wish I was, he thought bitterly. You don't know, you don't know how I've already forgotten about them.

"It's time you forget about the past, Shinn. They can't come back and they wouldn't want to see you like this." She bit her lower lip; she only ever did so when she was nervous. "Besides… we have a future here, don't we?"

Staring into her luminous violet eyes, he mutely nodded and allowed her to pry his fingers from Mayu's phone and place it back into the drawer.

Nevertheless, it was a sleepless night and Shinn finally gave up on sleep at around 2am and headed to the beach. It wasn't the first time that he had wandered the sandy shores under moonlight, but it had been a long time. The last time, five years ago, he had sneaked out of the house to the beach with his little sister on a dare and was subsequently grounded for six weeks. Mayu had been so excited about their illegal expedition only to fall asleep on his shoulder not nearly an hour later. He smiled fondly at the memory; she was utterly mischievous and insufferable but mostly, she had been wondrously alive. He skipped a stone across the surface of the sea. It barely skipped twice before the waves swallowed it and Shinn gave a frustrated sigh. The memories were getting fainter and against his will, being replaced with new, happy memories. He was… happy here.

"What are you sighing about?"

He started, and whirled around, furious that he had been caught unawares. Goddamn it, just his luck. She seemed determined to curse his existence.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He said, without preamble.

"Do you have to be so angry all the time?" She wrinkled her nose in indignation and maybe it was the moonlight, but Shinn thought she looked _softer_… for a second, he almost thought she was Stellar. Or maybe it was the sleeping robe and the mussed up bed head. It was probably what Mayu had looked like five years ago when they had sneaked out of bed to the beach. Maybe he had finally gone insane from obsession though, because he didn't think there was anything more ridiculous than the Head Representative of Orb strolling along the beach at 2am in the morning dressed in her sleepwear.

"Sometimes, I can't sleep…" She volunteered meekly. She had moved closer and looked too solid to be a hallucination.

"Have you gone dumb? I'm not an apparition, in case you're wondering." That sounded more like the Athha he knew, it must be the real thing then, unfortunately.

"Are you stalking me or something? Why are you always appearing around me!"

"Don't flatter yourself, Asuka." She snorted inelegantly. "You're the one intruding on my usual haunt."

"Sometimes, I can't sleep." He mimicked sarcastically before turning his back on her and settling on the soft sand.

A companionable silence settled over them and Shinn felt certain that he had really gone over the edge this time. He felt no inclination, whatsoever, to break this temporary, magical peace between them. _Peace! _He had surely lost his mind.

"Do you still hate Orb?" It was a small, conciliatory whisper but Shinn was not feeling charitable.

"Yes."

Pause.

"Well, if you don't feel like talking, I can leave."

He could hear the sand shifting as she made to get up and before he could stop himself, the words spilled out, "it feels like I'm moving on without them."

"And that's why you hate Orb?"

He turned around, instantly incensed at her tone of incredulity, and expected to see her laughing at him. The words abruptly died in his throat when he discovered that she was sitting at an uncomfortably close two inches from his left shoulder. He felt an utterly inexplicable heat surge into his face and swiftly averted his gaze.

"Orb reminds you of what you've lost, doesn't it? Of what could have been had they lived…"

To have his most hated enemy breathe such sentimental nonsense was almost more than Shinn could bear. That didn't explain why he felt so inordinately close to tears. "What would you know about loss!" Anger was a safer emotion.

"You'd be surprised." She breathed sharply, suddenly, as if there were a stab of pain, or she had to catch a sudden breath in a wind. Shinn looked at her and realized that the impossible was happening. Far from baiting him, Cagalli Yula Athha was actually confiding in him. Not much. But a little. Athha was human and Shinn had been allowed to see.

"You're not the only one who lost people you cared for in the war, you know." She hesitated; the instinctive pause of one about to take a leap off the side of a cliff. "I lost my father in the first war, friends, and then some. Of course there are others who have lost much more." She smiled whimsically.

"What, are you stupid? It isn't something you ought to be smiling about!"

"Would crying, screaming or in your case, moping around, be preferable?" Ah, this was familiar ground. This, he could handle.

"I guess it isn't surprising, coming from you, seeing as how your father did leave you the Head Representative seat." He sneered, smiling smugly even as he prepared to block a punch.

Unfortunately, his moment of exultation was short lived as tears welled in her eyes. He wished she would just resort to physical violence, women never did play fair. "Uh…" He swallowed hard, an apology lodged deep in his throat. Instead he said the first thing that came to mind. "We had picnics at the beach." He awkwardly ran a hand through his hair. "My family, Mayu."

A pregnant pause and Shinn briefly contemplated how long it would take to drown himself in the ocean.

"Maybe I saw you when Father brought me to visit the navy ports." She offered tentatively, a metaphorical olive branch.

It was so quiet, so still, it felt like the world was holding its breath while Shinn deliberated over accepting the peace offering.

"Mayu… was really good at building sandcastles." There it was, the words were finally out in the open and the constant, iron ring of pressure around his heart eased a little. Someone else would now know that Mayu had built sandcastles; magnificent ones with moats and castle spires.

She brightened and inched closer. "Father was really good at solving crossword puzzles..."

It was impossible to stop the torrent of words now that the floodgates had been cracked open a little and before he knew it, the sun was peeking over the mirror-like surface of the sea.

She stretched, lazy and catlike, and stifled a yawn with one hand to her mouth. "It's a new day already, Shinn." Her gold hair was very nearly the exact shade of the sunlight. "Shall we go?" She bent a little, extending a hand to him, her eyes, clear and entirely without artifice.

"Aa, but there's still tomorrow." Shinn responded with a small smile, taking her proffered hand and allowing her to haul him to his feet. There was after all, still tomorrow to look forward to.

* * *

Shinn blinked, disoriented. He had fallen asleep by her bedside, the ache in his neck reminding him that a straight-back chair was really not the most comfortable place to sleep in. Gradually, he accustomed his eyes to the light and let them come open all the way. They drifted towards the tall French windows and he saw Cagalli's bedroom reflected in the glass. It was dark outside, and raining. It had been a pleasant dream. The clock showed half past six, nearly time for dinner and Cagalli had yet to stir. If she did, he hadn't felt it. He smoothed a stray lock of her hair from her forehead and reassuring himself that she would be alright alone for a few minutes, left in search of dinner.

* * *

Consciousness returned painfully slowly. Her mouth seemed to be lined with cotton and there was a throbbing pain coming from some point on her body, but she couldn't seem to locate it. She tried to orient herself and pin down her last memory but her random thoughts refused to be organized. _Weren't I at the press conference room?_ Lightning streaked across the sky and illuminated her surroundings. _Ah, my bedroom, the family manor. I must have passed out in the middle of my speech._ She blinked away the last few remaining cobwebs of her disorientation and struggled to sit up. Her shoulder was entirely covered with thick swaths of white bandage and like the surge of a tsunami, the memories of how she had acquired the wound flooded back. _The betrayal. The mysterious woman… and Kisaka. _

"Kisaka," she breathed, in the hopes that vocalizing his name would once again summon him to her side instantly. The name tasted like ashes on her tongue, filled with bitter regret and guilt. She had left him there, lying in a pool of his own blood while she saved her own skin. That he had insisted upon it was no excuse.

The parquet felt cool to her feet and she padded over to the tall windows. The view from the Princess of Orb's bedroom was naturally exceptional. She could see the distinctive architecture of the Parliament House, the northern beach and her faint reflection in the glass. _This is what you gave your life to protect, Kisaka. Was it worth it?_ She looked at her image in the glass. It was remarkably unchanged, though she felt irrevocably altered. Nothing was the same. She touched the mirror, hesitantly, reminiscent of the girl she used to be. She would have liked to be able to run away again, to join a desert resistance group, maybe even the circus, and to have Kisaka drag her back.She couldn't help the tears that slid down her cheeks. Kisaka would have disapproved. _You are the daughter of the leader of Orb. Commanders do not cry._ But of course, she had never been either a good daughter or a capable commander. She had always disappointed. And all that remained now was this hollow feeling of loss, seeping into the empty spaces they once filled.

For a moment, she envied Kisaka, envied him fiercely. He was beyond pain, beyond suffering, beyond loneliness. His war had been fought. He was victorious. _You left me! Left me to cope with this by myself! I can't! I'm not strong enough! I can't let you go, Kisaka._ But he had left for a place where he couldn't hear her, and she couldn't follow. No longer did she grieve for Kisaka. Her sorrow was for herself, for missing his presence, for having to live in this world without this noble friend by her side. She would never see Kisaka again.

* * *

Cagalli was standing in front of the windows with an expression that made his heart wrench. It only took a second for her to notice his entrance and in the time she took to turn around to greet him, she had schooled her face into a suitably solemn, blank expression. He was furious. It was perhaps acceptable that she pretended around everyone else but to do it to him too, that was unforgivable. 

"Thanks for taking care of me." Her voice was hoarse, from tears, he had no doubt.

"Of course, seeing as how you are incapable of taking care of yourself." It seemed as if he would never learn the right words. A shadow flitted across her face and he felt his anger melt away. "You ought to be in bed."

Astonishingly, without a single word of protest, she moved mechanically towards the bed and curled beneath the covers, knees drawn up to her chin.

Seconds ticked by as Shinn contemplated asking but when he saw a lone tear slide down her cheek, he made his decision. Lifting the covers, he slid between them and placed one arm under her shoulders. Her eyes widened perceptibly and she made to move away but he tightened his grip and pressed her head against his chest. "Sleep, Cagalli, I'll be here." He murmured into her hair and gradually, he felt her relax. Her fingers curled into the hair at the nape of his neck and her gentle breathing tickled his collar bone. Miraculously, within moments of the time slumber reclaimed her, he fell asleep too.

* * *

**Author's Note: **_Before AsuCaga fans (that actually includes myself -.-) go up in flames, please note that I did put ShinnCaga as one of the main pairings. I'm actually pretty convinced of the relationship too because let's face it, with the way Shinn hates Cagalli, its bound to not last very long. Hatred, I believe, is not the direct opposite of love, indifference is. So I don't think it's really that far-fetched to believe that his strong feelings of hate might convert to a similar intensity of love once he realizes that she isn't as bad as he had imagined. After all, if Shinn can fall in love with the sister of somebody he killed moments ago, he can fall in love with anybody! Naturally Athrun and Cagalli will get their chances later, save the best for last eh? I have quite a few chapters planned for them /grins/ This chapter didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to be – for one, Cagalli was supposed to be way stronger but Shinn insisted that he get to play the hero for once… Oh well, but I guess I'm ok with it this way too because losing Kisaka is probably a big enough blow to warrant all that crying. I hope you'll make it to the end and let me know what you think! _

_Oh and is anyone interested in Dearka and Miriallia? I originally planned to leave Dearka up on PLANT but… well Yzak's going to be out of the picture for a while and with a main cast of Athrun, Kira, Shinn and Cagalli for the next few chapters, I think I'll write myself into depression. I love Heine very much too but I'm reluctant to employ Fukada's usual cheap resurrection trick (he totally cheated my feelings with Mwu's fake death!) Let me know what __you would like to read!_


	4. Chapter 4: The Chosen Players

_**Disclaimer: **Merely a work of fandom._

* * *

**A New Dawn**

**Chapter 4**

**The Chosen Players**

_by tarot-flair_

* * *

The pink stone swung back and forth in a hypnotic rhythm. But far from lulling Athrun to sleep, it was triggering all sorts of memories. The pendant was long overdue for a new cord; the current black one slightly frayed from constant use. Athrun had worn it every day for four years and today, a few remaining hours from Orb and _her_, was no different. _Would she have changed? _The pendant made one oscillation – right, left. _We never made things clear… _Another oscillation – left, right. _What do I say, after one long year of distance? _Right, left. _Do we even share the same dreams anymore? _Left, right, it swung. The speed had decreased considerably. _I miss her. But will she still be the same girl I miss? _The pink stone had stopped completely; suspended two inches above his eyes. He could barely make out the shape in the darkness of his bunk but he had stared at it often enough to know that it had never lost its luster and having it so close – a physical reminder of the memories he shared with her – was reassuring. _She can't have changed that much. _The doubts retreated just far enough for a pleasant wave of anticipation to wash over him. 

Suddenly, the room flooded with light and Athrun immediately sat up, clutching the pendant protectively in his fist. He had to blink a couple of times before the momentary blindness faded and a familiar red-headed figure clad in casual, civilian clothing came into view.

"Athrun…" It was a comforting voice; a constant source of solace.

"Meyrin." He smiled in welcome and she took it as her cue to settle on the bunk, next to him. "Is there something you want to talk to me about?"

"Well, Kira said to tell you that we'll be landing in an hour."

"An hour? I thought we still had at least three more hours to go."

"I think he might have something to do with it. I saw him in the control room reprogramming the OS."

"Kira becomes an entirely different person when it concerns Cagalli." He shook his head in resignation.

"Is that… necklace… a gift from her?"

"This?" Athrun momentarily held the necklace up to the light before slipping it over his head where it settled comfortably over his heart. "Ah, it was a gift from her. If you can call it that… she gave it to me after she thought I killed Kira. Strange, isn't she?"

"She must have liked you, even then." Meyrin risked a glance at the man sitting next to her. His posture relaxed, his eyes softened with reminiscence. But there had also been a time when his shoulders had been perpetually tense; when he had been torn between his own beliefs and that of the blonde princess. And that was why she had insisted on coming along. _I won't let that happen again, if I can help it._

"Like me? Hardly, she wanted to kill me." He chuckled softly at the memory and Meyrin smiled. Athrun's smiles were precious, fleeting things and she treasured each and every one of them, even if it was not she who prompted them. "I think Cagalli would have given it to anyone else in that situation."

"Athrun…" She wanted to tell him how much she cared for him but when she looked into his eyes and saw the open affection he held for her, the words evaporated like a long-held sigh in winter air. He was waiting patiently for her to continue, but she had lost all motivation to do so. This companionable fondness – it was the last thing she wanted to lose and Meyrin was nothing if not patient; she would wait until he realized that she had always been and would always be right next to him, waiting to catch his fall. "T-thanks for Neko!" She blurted out the first thing she could think of. She had been delighted when Athrun had presented the mechanical cat for her birthday and following tradition, had named it after what it most resembled.

"I'm glad you like it." He smiled, heartbreakingly beautiful and Meyrin felt her heart soar. And in that short hour, before things seem poised to change, they talked about inconsequential things, frivolous things, and Meyrin luxuriated in his presence, his laughter and mostly, just _him._

_

* * *

_

_"What makes you think," asked the woman, her voice soft and rasping, "that you can bring peace to earth?"_

_With her arm twisted painfully behind her back and her face unceremoniously pressed into the ground, it was more than a little difficult to speak, much less formulate an inspiring answer. "Killing me isn't going to help either!" She gasped._

_The woman only tightened her grip on her hair. It did not seem like her answer had been the right one._

_"Oh, it will, eventually. Your naivety disgusts me!" She bit out venomously, each word laced with fury. "Everything will be easier with you gone!"_

_Cagalli braced herself and shifted her weight onto her injured shoulder. Burning pain raced up her arm and for a moment, the world turned black but the new position gave her just enough leverage to lift her face a few inches away from the ground and access to a few inches more of air space. "Killing me will only plunge Earth, Orb, into war again! How will that bring peace!" She hissed, half in pain and half in rage at the senselessness of her impending death. _

_"It will bring peace," she paused, "eventually." It was enough for Cagalli to sense the vague uncertainty and more importantly, the slight let up in pressure on the armlock. Taking a chance, she tugged hard with her uninjured arm and maneuvering her wrist, attempted to reverse their positions. No such luck. Cagalli had not counted on the woman's unexpected strength; effortlessly, she twisted her arm back into place and this time, slammed her head none-too-gently against the ground. The world, once again, turned black and her ears rang so sharply from the impact so that when she heard a distant rumble from the ground, she thought it was just from the concussion. But realisation dawned when she noticed the woman's distracted gaze towards the entrance of the hangar. She had heard it too. And as the rumble got distinctly louder and nearer, Cagalli realized that it was the sound of heavy military boots, many heavy military boots treading on hard ground, and fast approaching. It did not seem like she would be able to keep the promise she had made to Kisaka after all._

"_If you really believe that killing me will bring peace, then do it!" She snarled bitterly. Years of her father's efforts to keep Orb out of war, Kisaka's sacrifice, all the lives of Orb's soldiers; they were all going to amount to nothing because Cagalli had been stupid enough, careless enough, to land in this situation._

_Suddenly, the excruciating pressure on her back loosened altogether and hands that had mercilessly kept her in place vanished._

_"You don't deserve to live." The whisper was a curious blend of anguish, defeat and defiance but Cagalli did not pause to question her fortune. Instinctively picking up the woman's gun that lay forgotten a few feet away, she sprinted towards the mobile suit. It was only when she was enclosed in the relative safety of the cockpit that she risked a glance at the still motionless woman and wondered why her life had been spared._

Hefting the weapon – a standard Orb military issued pistol, Cagalli looked out of the windows of her office in the Athha Manor. The council members would be arriving soon, for an unprecedented Parliament meeting in her private quarters. With her injury and the current media-staged ruckus, the council members had unanimously agreed to her request to hold Parliament in the Athha Manor. And one of them was a traitor.

Oh, she could not be absolutely sure it was one of the council members. It could very well be a wealthy businessman disgruntled at the lack of wartime profits but to wield enough political clout to recruit Eurasia, an entire federation, as an ally would require more than wealth. It would require influence at least the equivalent of her office as Head Representative of Orb and with her death… Cagalli's grip tightened on the gun, her fingers pressed against the irrefutable proof of betrayal: the insignia of Morgenroete. The gun had been specially developed for the Orb military – semi-automatic, with a much larger than usual ammunition capacity and a mechanism that would greatly reduce recoil. That some of her assassins had had access to these guns, could only mean that their leader was closely affiliated to Orb. It meant that Kisaka, Uthar, Eltho and all the rest of the soldiers that had given up their lives for her had been killed by people they could have dined with, joked with and cared for. It was unforgivable.

"Cagalli? They're here." Cagalli spun around, startled out of her murderous rage, and found Miriallia leaning against her door, her expression, puzzled and concerned. "Why are you holding a gun?" Cagalli inwardly winced. Miriallia's journalistic persistence was far from dormant despite her change in profession and from past experiences, had proven to be lethal.

"New model! Fresh off the Morgenroete research lab and Erica wanted me to have a look at it first!" She hurriedly put the gun away in her desk drawer before straightening up and meeting Miriallia's gaze. As the Head Representative's aide, Miriallia's perceptiveness was invaluable, only if it was not trained on her. Like now. Fortunately, Miriallia had decided to spare her the interrogation, for now.

"Are you ready to meet the lions head on?" She looked decidedly too gleeful for such an occasion.

"What lions? I'm no Christian heading for the slaughter. They ought to be the ones feeling nervous." Cagalli snorted, adjusting her shoulder cast to a more comfortable position. She smoothed out the collar of her green and white blouse and flicked some imaginary lint off her lapel. "How do I look?"

"Decent," Miriallia choked on her laughter. "No, I mean great! You look like a princess." The good intentions immediately lost when she promptly burst into loud guffaws.

"Ok, so maybe I'm slightly nervous." Cagalli conceded, rolling her eyes, before blowing past her insufferable right-hand woman and heading down the spiral staircase towards the meeting room. Only to come to an abrupt halt at the disgruntled visage of a red-eyed colonel.

"S-Shinn! What are you still doing here?" She could feel the heat radiating off her face. She just hoped it was not as obvious to them. Of course that had nothing to do with the fact that she had woken up to his heartbeat this morning. Almost instantly, she felt her ears turn pink. Was it possible to die of mortification? "Aren't you needed somewhere else?" The ancient Ming vase in the hallway was a safe object to concentrate on, she decided. It was also the exact same shade of his eyes, she realized belatedly as her fingers twitched from the urge to fan herself. When she very reluctantly dragged her eyes back to him, he had a large smirk and his answer ready.

"There's nowhere else more important than right next to the person I'm supposed to be guarding, is there?" His smirk widened, if that was possible.

"What! Who would appoint you as my bodyguard!" She longed to wipe that irksome smirk off his face, preferably with something very rough.

"Myself, naturally." He crossed his arms. "I'm the most suitable candidate for the job."

"I absolutely refuse! I don't need protection _inside my own house_!"

"Ah, shut up, both of you. Shinn, you really shouldn't agitate her so early in the morning, especially not now. And Cagalli, do you mind dealing with those annoyances first before beating the daylights out of him?" The tension returned, and Cagalli knew that Shinn's somber expression mirrored her own.

"I'm going to stand right next to you in that room," he said quietly.

"No."

He looked determined to protest.

"This is something I have to do alone, something I _can_ do alone." And she closed the doors behind her.

* * *

They stood up in unison upon her entry – a mass of silent questioning and, she would like to think, concern. This was, after all, a largely newly elected Council as most of the previous council members had died in unfortunate accidents. A bland smile fixed firmly on her face, she strode to the head of the long table and nodded in greeting before seating herself. A brief interval of papers shuffling, chairs scraping and throats clearing and the battle had begun. 

They gave her the courtesy of the first strike.

"Thank you for accommodating my request to hold Parliament here. I am aware that I have a lot of explaining to do but before that, I would like to ascertain that my leadership is still uncontested." She let her gaze sweep across the table. "As you can see, I'm very much well and alive." She knew she made quite the picture today – she had opted out of her usual deep purple Representative suit as a reminder to them that she was not just any Representative. She was the only princess Orb had, an Athha and in all honesty, the public symbol of Orb.

"Of course, Cagalli-sama. We only appointed Taiten as a desperate measure as word had leaked out about your assassination." Twenty-three year old Rameul Alskou said, smiling warmly. _Word leaked out mere hours after my supposed death? She had no idea Orb's networks were that efficient. _But her apprehension eased another degree at Rameul's sincerity. She was a year older, hopefully a year wiser, and this time, she had allies. If they thought they could manipulate her, they had better think again.

The rest nodded in agreement.

"I'd more than glad to relinquish the position as Head Representative now that you're back." Taiten Toma Seiran interjected smoothly. Her eyes narrowed in distaste; his insinuation that he had held the position at any point in time sat uncomfortably with her. Besides, the name Seiran itself was distasteful.

"Thank you for your vote of confidence." She smiled, in what she hoped was a princess-like manner. No time like the present to abuse the title they had foisted on her. "There was indeed an attempt at assassination in Eurasia, before I met with the Representative of the Eurasian Federation," she confirmed. Angry murmurs filled the room and she waited for them to peter out before continuing. "However, before concrete evidence is gathered to prove that the Eurasian government is involved, I would like Orb to refrain from making any allegations. Or any declarations of war." She added meaningfully.

"It took place on Eurasian soil! In one of their military bases, no less. How could they possibly not know?" Yazuo, the oldest and most volatile member of the Council, retorted disdainfully. She rather liked him. With his hooked nose, piercing eyes and a mouth that was perpetually set in a frown, the irascible old man greatly resembled a hawk. Like a hawk, he went straight in for the kill, and never circled his prey. She appreciated his bluntness but it was not time yet to reveal that a good portion of her assassins had been men carrying Orb military equipment.

"Representative Yazuo, I'm sure many of us here were ignorant of the fact that Lord Djibril was temporarily sheltered by some members of the Council a year ago. There are many things that can happen in a country without the government's authorization. It could be a random terrorist group opposing the peace agreement between Orb and Eurasia. Is that really worth going to war over?"

"Eurasia is a declining power; even if we do go to war, I doubt they will pose much of a challenge." Her composure shattered as she stared incredulously at Taiten.

"_Are you joking!_" So much for poise and self-control. She suppressed the familiar urge to slam her palms on the table. "Orb is a neutral country! We do not seek to conquer other nations!"

"Inaction will only embolden them, Representative Athha. We must not allow them to get away with this. If we strike now, while the iron is hot- "

"I repeat, Orb is a neutral country! We will not go into war except in defense!" She slammed her palms on the table in frustration, or at least her uninjured left one, and stood up to glare at the dark-haired politician. Taking a deep breath, she tried for a more rational approach. "Haven't we learnt anything from the previous wars? Orb is doing well now; do we really want to destabilize the economy and citizenry in order to pursue revenge? Especially when it might be unwarranted." Amber clashed with icy-blue as Cagalli locked glares with Taiten. He yielded; looking away first, a flicker of grudging respect surfacing in those blue depths. She had won, this round at least.

"No need to get so worked up over a suggestion…" Yazuo grumbled. Cagalli could have laughed at the sudden drop in tension, instead, she settled for sitting back down on her seat.

"It was an unbelievable suggestion. Until the intelligence reports and the press release from Eurasia come in, I suggest we work at reassuring the world of Orb's stability."

"Your wish is our command," Taiten had clearly recovered from the stumble. "There isn't likely to be much evidence, though, seeing as you're the only survivor…" The man sure knew how to push her buttons. The fight abruptly drained out of her at the thought of all the bodies that had littered the ground.

"Parliament is adjourned for today," was all she said.

* * *

As the council members filed out of the meeting room, Cagalli scanned their faces, silently wondering which one had had the audacity to attempt her assassination. Rameul? Impossible, the man was a fairly impressionable young man who had worshipped her father and upon his death, transferred that loyalty and admiration unconditionally to the daughter. In fact, more than half of the Council was made up of people like Rameul and Cagalli knew she owed a lot of her influence to the Athha name. Yazuo? The man was prone to confrontation and had a strong nationalistic streak but it was precisely that which ruled him out. His policies had always been for the good of Orb and being the traditionalist that he was, would never have condoned the assassination of the heir of one of Orb's oldest families. That left Seiran, who seemed such a natural suspect that Cagalli felt inclined to give him more credit. He had not been elected like the rest of the politicians with the exception of herself; occupying a seat on the Council by default as the last remaining Seiran. But even though the Seiran name was currently a source of derision in Orb, Taiten's natural good looks and charisma had won him a sizable following, particularly of the female variety. She had thought him a decent politician who had, until now, advocated peace and neutrality. She could feel a migraine coming on. 

"Cagalli"

"Cagalli!"

"_Cagalli!_"

"What?" She snapped out of her reverie, blinking a few times before realizing that Miriallia had been trying to get her attention for quite a while.

"The meeting's over! What are you still in a daze for?" Before she could defend herself, Miri bulldozed on. "So has war been averted? Or should we prepare to launch the missiles?"

"No, no, of course not! No need to dust off the missiles."

"That's good because Kira is wearing a hole in the carpet of your office."

"Alright, I'll just go meet him now," Cagalli stomped irritatibly towards the doors. There always _had_ to be people waiting to see her; demanding this, pleading for that-

"…_Kira!_" Cagalli's head whipped around in a delayed reaction. "You mean, _Kira's_ here? In my office? And you only told me _now_?"

"You were otherwise occupied," she replied blandly.

"Kira's here!" The migraine instantaneously disappeared. Even the throbbing pain of her shoulder receded. Kira would know what to do.

"What are you waiting for?" Miriallia laughed at the radiant joy which transformed Cagalli from a weary politician to a child who looked as if Christmas had come early for her. Cagalli ran for the stairs.

* * *

When his head connected with the hard rosewood parquet of Cagalli's office floor, Kira's first thought was: _I can't believe I miss being abused_. He just wished that they were in the zero-gravity field of space where he could have floated harmlessly around instead of nursing the beginnings of a headache. But this was Cagalli, and a Cagalli who did not think that a tackle was a suitable greeting for her twin brother would not be half as lovable as she was. He laughed, hugging her golden warmth to him, immensely comforted by her exuberance. 

"Kira! What are you doing here?"

"You didn't seriously expect me to stay up on PLANT with that stunt you pulled on international television, did you?"

A discreet cough and a quickly smothered laugh interrupted their conversation and Kira watched in amusement as Cagalli realized that they had an audience. She stood up abruptly, dusting off her pastel green long skirt and attempting to gather the remaining shreds of her Head Representative dignity. It would even have been fairly successful if not for the twin spots of red on her cheeks.

"Well… that was… unexpected…" Dearka managed in between bursts of laughter.

Kira helped himself up, rubbing gently at the bruise at the back of his head. Now that he was viewing Cagalli from a more normal perspective, he finally noticed the _dress_ she was wearing. He must have hit his head harder than he thought. "Wow, Cagalli… that's a really nice dress! You look almost like a lady," he complimented.

Apparently, she did not share the same appreciation he had for compliments.

Bristling like an angry cat, she stalked up to him and proceeded to stab him repeatedly in the chest with a very strong finger. "_What do you mean by that!_"

Catching her finger before she could actually drill a hole through his chest which she no doubt intended, Kira used his other hand to tilt her head to the right where a long, thin scar marred the smoothness of her cheek. "That isn't going to be permanent, is it?" He said lightly, despite a growing ache of guilt.

"No, of course not, it's just a bullet graze. It'll fade in a few days."

"What about this," he tapped lightly on her shoulder.

"That too," she said flatly.

"Any idea who did it?" He was really proud of how calm he sounded.

She turned to look at him and maybe it was a twin thing, or maybe it was just because it was Cagalli, but he understood perfectly. She would tell him when they were alone and she was ready.

"It's ok," he smiled and because she looked like she needed it, he reached out and ruffled her hair vigorously.

"Hey!" Swatting his hand away, she glared at him indignantly. "Is that something you ought to do to your older sister!"

"Who made you the older sister?"

Eyes flashing dangerously, her mouth opened to deliver a stinging diatribe when a feminine voice echoed from the doorway.

"I hate to break up the party but lunch is almost ready."

"Miri!" He was genuinely glad to see his old friend and judging from Dearka's reaction, so was the blonde pilot who had taken an extended shore leave to come down to Earth.

"If you are done ogling me, I might reconsider showing you the way out," Miri said evenly, still looking at Kira but quite obviously referring to somebody else.

"H-hello to you too…" Dearka laughed nervously, one hand awkwardly running through his hair. He was certain he had not been _that_ obvious and the heartless woman had definitely not mellowed over the years.

"It's good to see you, Kira. And you too, Athrun and Meyrin-san." She smiled warmly, pointedly ignoring Dearka.

Kira caught the barely perceptible flinch Cagalli made at the sound of Athrun's name and knew – that time had not healed all wounds and despite how his best friend and twin pretended otherwise, the feelings between them were far from resolved.

"Miri, can you show us to our rooms first?" Taking the matter into his own hands, he gently but firmly steered Meyrin towards the doors and Miri, smart girl that she was, immediately caught on and impatiently signaling to Dearka to follow her, ushered them out of the door.

* * *

Seconds ticked by silently. The air was thick with tension, unspoken thoughts, and labored heartbeats. Neither of them moved. When the door clicked shut and the last of the footsteps had faded away, Athrun finally pushed away from the wall he had been leaning on and moved before her. 

He had observed her interaction with Kira – her unaffected, boisterous fondness, and felt a sharp pang of _emotion_. He did not particularly want to label it as jealousy because what he wanted to be was not her brother but still, it bothered him that she never behaved so spontaneously with him. Maybe once she had, but now it seemed like a far-fetched dream.

"You look very pretty." Once again, words failed him.

Mesmerized by the husky sound of his voice and the strange, almost reverent intensity in his green eyes, Cagalli slowly murmured. "I don't usually wear these… Acting is important, sometimes, isn't it?" She tucked a strand of golden blonde hair behind one ear and he was struck by how much weight she had lost. Her cheekbones were too prominent and the delicate bones in her wrist, too noticeable.

_Acting is important, sometimes, isn't it?_

The words sounded familiar, but for the life of him, he could not remember where he had heard it.

"You said it, once, don't you remember?" She smiled at his puzzlement.

The memory clicked into place – of course, up on PLANT, when he had suggested that she wear a dress for the meeting with the Chairman. The meeting before everything had gone wrong.

"You don't look like an act." He meant it; she looked pretty, as pretty as she did in wrinkled cargo pants and shirt. The memories flitted through his mind, gossamer-light and fragile; seductive whispers of a time that felt so very long ago. Then, on a lonely island, he had thought that the distance put between enemies of a war was great. Now, they fought on the same side and the distance was still, if not more so, unbridgeable.

"It's ok even if I do. I love Orb. I used to think that it was such a heavy burden… but now, it's a burden I would gladly, willingly carry." He realized, with a pang of regret, that the girl had blossomed into a woman, or perhaps elevated to a goddess.

"You were always willing to shoulder it." _Willing enough to marry for it. _The thought came unbidden; the ferocity of the resentment, unexpected. And she had always understood him.

"I was, wasn't I? Would you have done the same for PLANT?"

He paused to seriously contemplate.

"I hope I'll never have to find out."

"Bunch of patriots that we are," she laughed. An empty laugh because both of them knew how true it was.

"I might do it for Orb too," he said lightly, impulsively.

She snorted scornfully. "Don't, it was a stupid thing to do."

_Was that what you wanted to hear? Did that make you feel better? _The voice in his head taunted.

"It's a common affliction – stupid things… I did a couple of those myself." It was as close to an apology that she would accept.

He met her eyes across the room and felt the old, familiar urge to enfold her in his arms.

"Athrun!" The door flung open to reveal a flustered Meyrin. "Did you see— " She paused and flushed a color to match her hair. "S-sorry if I interrupted anything… I was just looking for Neko! There he is!" She hurried to Athrun's side and picked up the mechanical cat curled up at his foot, a tiny ball of metal that he had not even noticed.

"Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen?" She stroked the cat behind its ears and it emitted a very authentic purr. "Athrun's very talented in making them."

"I know… He made Kira's Torii and Lacus' Haros…"

"Cagalli!"

As one, the three of them turned towards the newest intruder.

"Didn't I tell you not to wander around, even if it's in your –- " Shinn trailed off in mid sentence as he suddenly found himself the center of attention.

"What the hell are all of you doing here?" He looked directly at Athrun.

Before he could reply, since it seemed as if Shinn fully expected him to, Cagalli had stalked over and grabbing Shinn roughly by the arm, tugged him towards the corridor. "Never mind! Let's go for lunch!"

"We're changing your bandages first!"

"I'm changing them myself, you dolt!"

Their voices, even as loud as they were, had faded out of hearing by the time Meyrin turned and looked earnestly at him.

"Let's go for lunch too, Athrun."

His glance towards the corridor was wry and a little sad.

"If you say so," he replied.

* * *

**Author's Note: **_My apologies for the late update! Aiks, I know I deserve to get bricked for taking 3 freaking weeks for just 5,000 words but the last scene simply refused to be written. In fact, this is the third rewrite! I wanted their first reunion to go a certain way and although I'm still not quite satisfied, I think this will be the closest I can get without giving up. I tend to write in bits and pieces when inspiration strikes so strangely enough, Chapter 6 is mostly written while Chapter 5 (the next, oops!) is an utter blank..._

_I hope you'll be satisfied temporarily with a companion fic I've written: **A Fork in the Road.** Check it out on my profile and although you don't have to read it, it'll probably give a better insight to the main fic. _

_And a **BIG** thank you to all those who reviewed, without which I would probably have just given up on the darn scene._

_I normally try to reply through private messages but to those who I can't - cleis, isabel, asucaga4ever -  
thanks for the absolutely wonderful reviews. they made my day, heck, they probably made my week!_

_And to the recent reviewers - _

_tamara224: the main pairing is most assuredly AxC although Shinn gets his spotlight. _

_Miich: Thanks, I love you too! _

* * *


	5. Chapter 5: Distance

**Disclaimer:** _Merely a work of fandom._

**Author's Note: **_Wow, what do you know... I've updated this story after almost six years. I recently logged onto my now-defunct email address that was linked to my account and saw all these review and follow alerts. I read through each one of them and was so touched that I felt compelled to revisit this story. Fortunately, I try to never delete any of my work and I found the remains of this story in one of my folders, complete with characterizations, plot notes and half-written chapters. I wanted to continue this story for the readers that I had disappointed but I wasn't sure I'd be able to, having been so detached from the Gundam Seed fandom for so many years, so I went back and watched a couple of episodes and amazingly, the Gundam Seed Destiny ending once again left me so dissatisfied that I picked up the figurative pen again and got to work. If you are reading this story and liked it, please leave me a note. It'd really help motivate me to continue writing._

* * *

**A New Dawn**

**Chapter 5**

**Distance**

_by tarot-flair_

* * *

Cagalli leaned heavily against the door of her bathroom, her heart still pounding rapidly from her first meeting with Athrun ever since the war had ended. She had often thought of what she would say to him when and if she ever met him again but all her carefully chosen words had left her the instance she looked into those precious, emerald eyes. She had thought herself slightly older and wiser but the moment she saw him again, all the old, confusing feelings of inadequacy, fear and fragility had returned as strongly as before. With him, all she could remember was of her young, naïve and inept self. She had wanted to throw herself into his arms, beg him to stay with her again and protect her from the world.

Heaving a deep breath, she shook her head hard and blinked away the tears in her eyes. _Oh my god, have I not grown up in the slightest bit?! _She had not realized how easily her resolve could be shaken. When she had watched the _Archangel _depart into space, she had known very well that Athrun and her could never be together. She was Uzumi Nara Athha's daughter, Orb's Princess, and she was a woman with a lifetime of obligations and responsibility. There was no room for her personal desires and Athrun deserved so much more. When she met Meyrin, she had known immediately that she would be the girl who would always put Athrun first, who would follow doggedly after him through any danger and who would sacrifice everything to be with him. Even if it had broken her heart, she had known that Meyrin would be better for him.

"Cagalli! Are you done? You better be or I'm coming in right now damn it! I told you to let me change your bandages for you! How the hell are you going to do it on your own!"

Her bathroom door visibly shuddered on its hinges from Shinn's loud yells.

"Don't you dare come in! I'm almost done!" Fearfully looking at the door and expecting Shinn to barge in at any given moment, Cagalli hastily unwrapped the bandages from her shoulder, reapplied a thick layer of the healing ointment on her wound and wrapped a fresh layer of bandages over it.

"I'm giving you one more minute!"

"Yes I'm almost done! Argh shut up and leave me alone!" Despite their reconciliation, Shinn still retained his innate ability to instantly rouse her ire. She adjusted the sleeve of her blouse to strategically cover most of the awful-looking bandage and looked into the mirror. Her cheeks were still flushed. She splashed cool water over her face and took a deep breath.

_There's no avoiding it anyway. _

* * *

Lunch was a casual affair of sandwiches and soda in Cagalli's private office. It was completely soundproof and ever since the second assassination attempt six months ago, Cagalli had insisted that her trusted personal retinue of guards make a bug sweep daily.

"Do you have any idea who would have wanted you dead?" Kira ignored the freshly-made club sandwich on his plate and affixed a serious gaze on his twin sister.

"At the last count, I think it was about one thousand and two people. Of course, there might have been a few more after the announcement that I had signed a mobile-suit reduction treaty with the Republic of East Asia." Cagalli said flippantly, taking a small sip of soda. "Everyone just assumes that the mighty Orb is simply taking advantage of the militarily weaker East Asian Federation by proposing that they reduce their weapons production."

"This isn't a time to be making jokes! Do you know how news of your assassination attempt has destabilized international relations? The allies that have signed all those peace treaties and arms-reduction agreements with Orb did it based on the absolute trust that they held in you and your principles for peace. With your Council's rash announcement of war, all that trust has disintegrated and they are now fearful that a sudden change of leadership would immediately erase all of Orb's promises."

"She's not really that far off the mark though. As you mentioned, Cagalli stands as Orb's symbol for peace. There really isn't a shortage of people who would want her dead or conveniently gone." It was the first time that Shinn had spoken up since the group had arrived from PLANT. Athrun took a closer look at him and was more than slightly startled at the changes in the boy. Was this really the same wild-eyed, uncontrollable boy just a year ago? The red eyes were still as fiery as before but now the fire was carefully banked, his dark hair was as unkempt and tousled as ever but the constant tension that used to wrap around him had completely left his body, and he sat relaxed in a casual poise. There was a familiarity in the way he sat right next to Cagalli and in the matter-of-fact way that he had produced spare napkins from the bottom drawer of her desk. It was downright odd and Athrun didn't know if he felt comfortable with it. Weren't they mortal enemies just a year ago?

"You mean there were other assassination attempts?" Kira's voice was quietly calm but Athrun knew him better.

"Just a couple but with me around and Ki …" Shinn paused uncomfortably in mid-word. "I mean Cagalli is well-protected in Orb. I should have followed her to Eurasia."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Isn't this all part and parcel of being a public symbol and leader? I'm sure Lacus has had her fair share of death threats. The point is that until now, there hasn't been any real damage done." _Until now, Kisaka had always been right by her side. _

"That's bullshit Cagalli. Have you ever considered what would have happened if they had succeeded? All your hard work for the last few years would simply be for nothing. We will find this assassin and you will take more precautions to ensure your safety." Kira's voice, usually so gentle, was hard and brooked no argument.

"Tell us what happened and we can go from there." Dearka piped up, in a vain attempt to break the somber mood in the room.

Reluctantly, Cagalli began relating the whole debacle; from the time she had stepped off her helicopter and was strangely greeted by a military general instead of the President of the Eurasian Federation, to the ensuing gun fight in the hangar, and finally to the mysterious woman who had almost killed her.

"… I'm only alive because she allowed me to escape…" Tears of humiliation burned at the back of her eyes. So many brilliant lives sacrificed for hers and she had still been at the utter mercy of her enemy. She twirled the dial of her safe and removed a standard Orb military-issued pistol, "This was the gun that she used. She might have simply taken it from one of… the bodies of our men… but she felt strangely familiar. Her hand-to-hand combat skills are very similar to what is taught in our military training. There was no hesitation at all, she's very skilled."

Cagalli looked around the room, taking in the pained faces. A traitor, a betrayal among their own ranks.

"However, she's definitely not the mastermind. I'm not entirely sure how she ties in with the Eurasian trap. She seemed to be operating on her own. The Eurasian forces didn't hesitate to shoot at her and she fled at the sight of them." Cagalli impatiently ran her fingers through her hair. She had been so busy that she had not even realized how long it had grown. The golden strands extended halfway down her back and if Cagalli had been the type of girl to linger in front of a mirror, she would have noticed how feminine it made her look… and promptly find the time to cut it off. But as it was, her daily schedule for the past year had been so full that she had taken to dividing her time into fifteen minute blocks.

"What was the Eurasian government's response?"

Cagalli instinctively turned to look directly at Athrun to answer his question and immediately realized it was a big mistake. She felt completely naked and vulnerable when those emerald eyes were so intently focused on her.

"The President of the Eurasian Federation called first thing this morning. He apologized profusely and claimed that he knew nothing about it! He was literally stammering on the phone. If he was just putting on an act, he's a damn good actor. He claims that he was told that my flight was delayed and that I would be arriving an hour later than our agreed time. The admiral that informed him of the delay is currently missing. He also said that they are conducting their own investigations and… the strangest thing is that every single member of the Eurasian Elite force is accounted for. I definitely recognize their uniforms and both Kisaka and I were so certain that we were attacked by their Elites. In the exchange of fire, we easily killed at least 40 or more men. Yet, the President told me that not a single body was found in the hangars! If what he says is true, my enemy is unimaginably powerful. To be able to mobilize hundreds of men and secretly remove all the mobile suits from a sector hangar right under the nose of the Eurasian military would require an immense amount of power and money… it shouldn't be that difficult to locate someone capable of that."

"Someone who has powerful connections in both Eurasia and Orb. Someone who would stand to gain if you were out of the picture. What about that Seiran fellow who seems to be next in line if you were out of the picture?"

"He does seem like the most likely suspect, doesn't he? So likely that I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt. He's rash and flamboyant and hardly a pacifist but despite his unfortunate heritage, until yesterday, he has always agreed with Orb's neutral stance. But yes, I agree that he will need to be investigated."

"Athrun and I will cover that. I'll need authority to tap his phone lines and access his network systems. Give us a list of suspects and we can start as soon as today." Kira chimed in.

"There's no need for you to do that, Kira. I appreciate it; I really appreciate all of you coming here today." Cagalli's eyes swept the room, taking in all the familiar faces, some of whom were enemies and were now comrades. "But Orb can settle its own problems and besides, Lacus needs you in PLANT, Kira."

"Cagalli! This is no time to pretend to be strong! Who would you even trust in Orb to carry out these investigations? I'm just a call away if Lacus needs me, you know she will understand."

"I know she will understand but more than most, I also know that she needs you. You'll never forgive yourself if anything happened to her and you were not there. Go home, Kira. I still have people I can trust here in Orb."

"And just who are these people that you can trust? The ones who scheduled your flight into Eurasia? The ones who have been secretly exporting Orb military equipment? Or were you referring to the ones who leaked news of your assassination to your Council as soon as you were thought dead?" Kira's eyes glittered dangerously, his voice uncharacteristically tense. Over the course of a relatively young but eventful life, few things fazed Kira anymore but the safety of his last remaining family was one of them.

"I have been handling Orb's affairs all by myself for the last year. I'm not that child anymore." That familiar gleam of stubbornness had settled over her amber eyes. "If I've had five assassination attempts and god knows how many death threats in the past year, I don't doubt that Lacus has had at least as many. You'll never forgive yourself if something happened while you were here." Cagalli's words, ringing with finality, had struck home.

"I'd never forgive myself too if anything happened to you." Kira said quietly.

"You can't always protect everyone." Cagalli smiled affectionately, if a little sadly, at her twin. She knew how protective Kira was of her. She was family, but Lacus was the one who would spend the rest of her life with this silly, protective twin of hers. Lacus was the one who held his sanity together at the end of the first war and through the second. She would be forever thankful and would gladly take a backseat to that.

"We'll go visit Mu, Murrue and the others later and you can take the shuttle back tomorrow." Cagalli said cheerily in an attempt to break the atmosphere of solemnity that had settled over the room.

"Let Athrun stay here at least." Kira said suddenly. "It'd make me feel better and you can definitely use his help."

Cagalli looked up from the sandwich that she had been about to begin eating, startled. Before she had a chance to think of a plausible reason to refuse, Athrun had already spoke up.

"Gladly."

Her head whipped around and amber eyes clashed with an implacable wall of emerald green. Whether it was from instinct or experience, Cagalli knew that this would be a much harder foe than her brother to move.

"I'm trusting you with her, Athrun." Kira said sternly and just like that, her fate was sealed.

* * *

The next morning saw the rag-tag group gathered together at the space shuttle departure terminal. It had been decided, with very little consideration of Cagalli's opinion, that Athrun would stay on in Orb. Apparently, Meyrin was also staying on in Orb on the pretext of being on vacation and wanting to spend some time with her sister, Luna. Again, nobody asked Cagalli. She ought to feel a little miffed that as Chief Representative of a rather powerful nation, she had so little say in her own affairs. At least, she had managed to persuade Kira to return to PLANT and Lacus. Much to his chagrin, Dearka too would be returning to PLANT on the orders of his superior, Yzak Joule.

"Congratulations on the engagement, younger brother." Cagalli reached up to give Kira a quick hug, startled at the unexpected height difference that almost had her on tiptoes. She hadn't quite realized but it would appear that in the past year, Kira's growth in height had been far outpacing her own. It made it just that much harder to insist that he was the younger brother when she barely reached up to his shoulders.

"I'll be back in Orb as soon as Lacus clears her current travel schedule. We'll have our wedding and you'll be her maid of honor as soon as everything settles down. Take care of yourself, little sister." Kira returned the hug and grinned at her, resisting the urge to ruffle her hair.

"Who's the little sister here?!" Cagalli said indignantly, the protest so second-nature, it was almost a reflexive action. But her retort lacked the usual bite and Kira knew that she, too, was aware of how serious the situation was.

He turned to Athrun and his tone became somber. "Keep her out of trouble, all right?"

"Final call for Shuttle 702 to Aprilius One, departure in approximately eight minutes. All passengers please head to Gate A3 now."

"That would be you, Kira. Don't worry about me." Cagalli gave him a gentle shove towards the gate. "Send my regards to my sister-in-law!" Cagalli's exuberance died down as soon as Kira and Dearka turned the corner and went out of sight. She stared after them for a moment, feeling just that bit bereft but this was no time to be feeling sorry for herself. She had bigger problems, namely in the manifestation of one blue-haired, green-eyed man who had the tendency to turn her world upside down whenever he appeared.

The three of them, Cagalli, Athrun and Meyrin, began walking towards the car. Shinn had wanted to send Kira off too but with Kisaka gone, his work had nearly doubled and he hadn't been able to come.

It was Meyrin who finally broke the awkward silence that had settled over the trio. "I'm going to visit Luna; I don't think she even knows that I'm here on Orb. I'll meet you back at the mansion." Meyrin's eyes flickered from Athrun to Cagalli and for a brief moment, it looked like she was about to say more, but her hesitation disappeared almost as quickly as it had appeared and she gave a small smile, waving as she left.

Athrun and Cagalli continued to the car in silence, Cagalli quickly reaching out to open the passenger door before Athrun could do it for her. For a brief second, their hands bumped and Cagalli felt like a bucket of cold water had just been emptied on her head, or that an electric current had just passed through her body. What cruel irony that the briefest touch had been enough to send her reeling when she had shared so much more with this man.

Ever the gentleman, Athrun backed away from the door and allowed her to open it herself and walked around to the driver's seat.

"Athha Manor?" He asked levelly.

"Oh no, you can just drop me off at Civil Defense Headquarters. I have a meeting later."

"I'll go with you."

"No, that's fine. I'll just have the driver pick me up later in the evening."

Athrun's fingers clenched imperceptibly around the steering wheel. "Do you realize just how much danger you are in? Even if it is in Orb? Do you have any idea what would happen to the world if something were to happen to you?" _The world would collapse. My world would collapse._

"Athrun, you are not Alex Dino anymore." Cagalli's voice was an uncharacteristic soft whisper. "You don't have to be him anymore."

"No, I'm not trying to act like your bodyguard. I'm just worried about you."

"Don't be." Her voice was flat and without emotion. If there was just one trait that characterized Cagalli, it was that she had never been good at hiding her emotions. That had changed obviously. "I've been taking care of myself all this time. Don't come back and presume to know better than I do."

_Don't come back and make me feel like that lost, little girl again. The girl who had allowed herself to be moved like a pawn. _

"I'm sorry. I never intended to make you feel that way." An overwhelming sense of tightness surrounded his chest as he recalled her look of desperate pleading when he had met Kira and her after the battle of Dardanelles, with the help of Mirialla. She had been lost and he had left her in the time of her greatest need and the little girl had had to grow up.

Given Athrun's penchant for speeding, the usual one-hour drive was easily accomplished in forty minutes. Cagalli had fully expected a sense of relief to see the grey walls of the Civil Defense Headquarters looming in front of her but inexplicably, a sense of regret seized her as she made a move to get out of the car.

However, before she could do that, Athrun unexpectedly seized her wrist, "Wait, Cagalli."

She twisted around to look at him in astonishment, her eyes drifting to his hand that still took hold of her wrist. She wondered if he could feel her rapidly accelerating pulse as well as she could hear her pounding heartbeat in her ears. She really hoped not.

"I have something of yours," he reached into his pocket, turned her hand over and placed a small object into the palm of her hand.

The intricate silver ring, with a Haumea stone as centerpiece, had been his last gift to her.

Her breath caught in her throat, Cagalli stared up at him wordlessly.

Athrun reached into the collar of his shirt and pulled out the necklace that he constantly wore. "Remember this? I've always worn it and I think it is why I'm still here. When I commissioned your ring, I had hoped it would protect you like your necklace did me."

"Even if," he paused and hurt flickered in his emerald depths, "even if you no longer have feelings for me, I still hope that it will keep you safe. It was meant for you."

Cagalli had long thought her heart broken beyond repair when she finally saw that there would be no future for Athrun and her but seeing the play of emotions on his sharply-angled face, she felt her heart lurch and began to bleed afresh.

"I don't deserve it. I gave it to Meyrin." She finally said, through the painful lump in her throat.

Athrun's only answer was to fold her palm firmly over the ring, his larger hand enveloping hers for a brief second until he released her hand entirely.

"It was meant only for you." He said quietly.

Clutching the ring to her chest, Cagalli hurriedly got out of the car, putting as much distance as she could between them, before he could notice the tears that threatened to fall.


End file.
